Suit: soccer group should have backgrounded abuser

The parents of a 13-year-old girl who was sexually abused by her soccer coach claim the nation's largest youth soccer organization was negligent in failing to require background checks of her abuser.

The lawsuit filed Monday in Santa Clara County Superior Court claims that if US Youth Soccer and its local affiliate California Youth Soccer Association-North had checked 37-year-old Emanuele Fabrizio's record, they would have seen his 2007 conviction for physical abuse against a woman. Neither organization returned emails seeking comment Thursday.

The San Jose Mercury News reports Fabrizio was sentenced to 15 years in prison in October after pleading guilty to one count each of continuous sexual abuse of a child and lewd and lascivious acts on a child.

Authorities say Fabrizio, of Sunnyvale, abused the girl while volunteering for West Valley Youth Soccer League.